Alpha1Nine#StolenValour Townsville Mayor Troy Thompson slammed by veteran groups over false military history.
#StolenValor Thompson has refused to stand down, telling the ABC he is "disappointed" councillors have turned against him but "looking forward" to addressing the matter at next week's council meeting.
In a lengthy post on social media on Friday night, Cr Thompson said he would not resign, regardless of any motion by the city's councillors at the next council meeting.
Special Air Service Association chair Martin Hamilton-Smith said his organisation investigated Cr Thompson's service history and found his purported links to the #SAS did not stack up.
“When people make these things up, and they're not true, I think they're trying to hang on to the coat-tails of people who have joined the Australian Defence Force — or in this case, special forces — and been through the mill and proved themselves," Mr Hamilton-Smith said.
"They want to be thought of by people as better than they genuinely are.
"It's wrong, it should be called out and it has been called out.
"It's a shame it wasn't called out before voting day."
Mr Hamilton-Smith, a former SAS soldier and South Australian politician, said the behaviour was a disappointing example of leadership and gave people a reason to be cynical about politics.
"I'm not sure how Mayor Thompson is going to be able to look people in Townsville in the eye — pretty solid community up there, they call a spade a spade — and be taken credibly going forward," he said.
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